Hurricane season ends Friday

A map of the known tropical cyclones in the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season. (Source: noaa.gov)

(RNN) – A busy Atlantic hurricane season officially comes to a close on Friday.

A total of 19 tropical storms and 10 hurricanes, including Sandy and Isaac, were recorded in the Atlantic Ocean in 2012.

Only two hurricanes made landfall in the United States: Isaac and Sandy. Two tropical storms made landfall in the United States: Beryl and Debby.

This season Hurricane Sandy was the most damaging hurricane in 2012. According to Forbes, the estimated damage could total more than $50 billion.

"We will continue to provide immediate relief for our citizens who were struck hard by Sandy," New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie told NBC New York. "But be assured, I will spare no effort and waste no time to rebuild and restore our tourism industry, our transportation and utilities infrastructure and the lives of our citizens for the long term."

Hurricane Isaac caused significant damage to the Gulf Coast, hitting the Mississippi-Louisiana coastline the day after the seven-year anniversary of Katrina. However, Isaac brought far less devastation than its predecessor.

"The highest totals over land for this period were in southeast Louisiana, southeast Mississippi, western Alabama, and southeast Florida with totals anywhere from [5 to 12.6 inches]," NASA reported.

Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall on Jacksonville Beach, FL on Memorial Day weekend. On record as the strongest subtropical cyclone to make landfall on the U.S. before June 1, Beryl dropped much needed rain on drought-stricken areas of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas.

Tropical Storm Debby helped topple the list of earliest known tropical cyclones prior to July 1 made in 2005. Occurring from June 23-June 27, Debby made landfall in Steinhatchee, FL, crossing the Sunshine state from west to east. Debby, like Beryl, dumped large amounts of rain onto Florida and neighboring states, setting all-time high records across the state.

There were fewer major hurricanes (category 3 or above) than in previous years. In 2011, there were 19 tropical storms, seven became hurricanes with four reaching category 3 or more.

In May, NOAA predicted a "near-normal" hurricane season. By then, Tropical Storm Alberto, the season's first named storm, had developed in the Atlantic 170 miles southeast of the Carolinas.

The year brought the most reported tropical cyclones on record before July 1, and there were eight declared cyclones in August, matching a record set in 2004.

In August 1992, it tore apart the Bahamas, south Florida, and the Gulf Coast, while also causing severe weather and tornadoes in the southeast. Spanning the course of 12 days, Andrew cost $26.5 million in damages.